Mass Effect: Sovereign
by DaceSaecen
Summary: Novelization of my personal Mass Effect canon. Follows the story of a jaded Lt. Commander Dace Shepard and his pursuit of a rogue soldier who is attempting to bring an ancient evil upon the galaxy.
1. Eden Prime

"Well, what about Shepard," Ambassador Donnel Udina asks as he looks off his office balcony overlooking the Presidium's pond, arching off in both directions around the circular base of the Citadel tower. "He grew up on Earth."

"He knows how tough life can be out there," Captain David Anderson replies. "His parents killed themselves by overdosing on every kind of drug they could find in Old New York. He had to make it on his own since he was only six years old."

"He proved himself on Rakhana getting those refugees off the ground and to safety. Also proved himself during the Blitz," Admiral Steven Hackett adds. "He held off enemy forces on the ground single-handedly until reinforcements arrived."

"He's the only reason Elysium is still standing," Anderson continues, agreeing with Hackett about Shepard's actions during the raid known as the Skillian Blitz.

"Well, we can't question his courage, but what about what happened at Torfan? Shepard's a loose cannon," Udina replies, concern coloring his voice.

"Nobody's exactly sure about what happened there, reports are sketchy at best. But, humanity needs a hero," Anderson responds. "And Shepard's the best we've got."

Reluctantly, Udina nods his head and says, "I'll make the call."

_In the year 2148, explorers on Mars discovered the remains of an ancient spacefaring civilization. In the decades that followed, these mysterious artifacts revealed startling new technologies, enabling travel to the furthest stars._

_The basis for this incredible technology was a force that controlled the very fabric of space and time._

_They called it the greatest discovery in human history._

_The civilizations of the galaxy call it…_

_MASS EFFECT_

* * *

**EDEN PRIME**

_Guess it's showtime_, Lt. Commander Dace Shepard thinks to himself as he walks up the stairs to the CIC deck, passing by crewmembers on his way. Over the intercom, the pilot's voice calmly alerts everyone to their status.

"The Arcturus Prime Relay is in range," Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau says. "Initiating transmission sequence."

"Commander," Private Richard Jenkins respectfully says as Shepard passes him on the way past the master systems display in the center of the CIC. Shepard returns the greeting with a pat on the back and a nod of the head, not wanting to get stopped on his way to the cockpit.

_Jenkins is young_, Shepard thinks to himself,_ young and entirely too eager_.

"We are connected," Moreau, or Joker as he prefers to be called, continues over the intercom. "Calculating transit mass and destination. The relay is hot. Acquiring approach vector. All stations secure for transit. The board is green. Approach run has begun. Hitting the relay in three…two…one…"

Shepard strides into the cockpit just as the SSV Normandy, the Systems Alliance's newest frigate, swings past the tuning-fork shaped Mass Relay. With a bright blue flash, an arc of blue lightning reaches out to the Normandy and propels it to faster than the speed of light. Shepard walks up behind the imposing figure of their "guest" – the male Turian Spectre with black and white facial markings called Nihlus. Shepard warily regards their "guest," not trusting having an alien representative of the Council special operatives, or aliens of any kind._ This is Earth's most advanced warship on its maiden voyage – why is he here to see all of our secrets when the Council won't even give Humanity a seat in their illustrious government?_

"Thrusters…check," Joker reports, tense at having their "guest" standing over his shoulder. "Navigation…check. Internal emissions sink engaged. All systems online. Drift…just under fifteen hundred k."

"Fifteen hundred is good," Nihlus comments, attempting to make it a compliment, but failing to most of the humans in the room. "Your captain will be pleased." Joker slightly turns his head and glares at the Spectre as Nihlus leaves the cockpit.

Waiting until Nihlus is out of earshot, Joker comments, "I hate that guy."

"Hmph," Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko laughs at Joker from the co-pilot seat. "Nihlus gave you a compliment, so you hate him."

"You remember to zip up your jumpsuit on the way out of the bathroom? That's 'good.' I just jumped us halfway across the galaxy and hit a target the size of a pinhead. So that's incredible! Besides, Spectres are trouble. I don't like having him aboard. Call me paranoid."

"You're paranoid. The Council helped fund this project. They have a right to send someone to keep an eye on their investment."

"Yeah, that is the official story. But only an idiot believes the official story," Joker cynically responds.

Shepard crosses his arms and frowns thoughtfully. "Poor Joker, always expecting the worse out of every situation."

Joker shoots Shepard a look and replies, "Yeah, well, bad feelings are an occupational hazard. We don't go anywhere unless there's a good reason for it, so what the hell are we doing out here?"

Before anyone can reply, Anderson calls over the comm, "Joker! Status report!"

"Just cleared the mass relay, Captain. Stealth systems engaged. Everything looks solid."

"Good," Anderson replies, trying to sound happier than he was but failing miserably. "Find a comm buoy and link us into the network. I want mission reports relayed back to Alliance brass before we reach Eden Prime.

"Aye aye, Captain," Joker responds, making sure that he didn't upset his Captain even more than he already was. "Better brace yourself, sir. I think Nihlus is headed your way."

"He's already here, Lieutenant. Tell Commander Shepard to meet me in the conference room for a briefing," Anderson orders before cutting the comm.

Joker looks over his shoulder at the XO, "You get that, Commander?"

"Great," Shepard comments sarcastically. "You piss the Captain off and now I'm gonna pay for it. Thanks." Shepard turns and begins walking down the corridor towards the center of the CIC.

"Pfft" Joker snorts. "Don't blame me. The Captain's always in a bad mood."

"Only when he's talking to you, Joker," Kaidan retorts, a sarcastic smile on his face.

* * *

Walking into the conference room, Shepard still couldn't stop thinking about what Pressley had said. Shaking his head to himself, it just didn't make much sense, for someone to hate so much and so openly. He knew that he didn't trust Turians either, much less Turian Spectres, but the Navigator wasn't even trying to hide his contempt for Nihlus. He hoped his little discussion with Pressley didn't make him too late to meet with the Captain…

"Commander Shepard, good," Nihlus says, breaking into Shepard's thoughts. "I was hoping that you would get here first. We have much to talk about."

Wary of what the Turian would want to talk about, Shepard guardedly asks, "And what would that be?"

"This world that we're going to – Eden Prime is it?"

"Yeah?"

"I've heard that it's quite beautiful."

Shepard crosses his arms, replying with some irritation creeping into his voice, "Wouldn't know of it myself. Never been. Marines don't get much shore time."

Ignoring Shepard's attitude, Nihlus continues, "It's more than just a tourist destination though, isn't it Commander? It's a symbol, a symbol of what Humanity has accomplished. Your race has accomplished more in the past 26 years than most races have yet to accomplish in hundreds. Definitely something that is worth protecting, isn't it?"

Shepard looks up quickly at that last remark, a defensive look in his eye, one that would have sent the Batarians running back on Torfan. "Is that a threat, Spectre?"

"Oh, no, Commander. Merely an observation. Humanity has come so far in so short a time. You have as many enemies as you do friends. It's always good to protect what you have."

Before Shepard could reply, Anderson walks into the comm room. "Good, you're both here. It's time that we filled the Commander in on what's going on."

Nihlus nods his head, and replies in that irritatingly controlled tone of his, "This mission is far more than a simple shakedown run, Commander."

"Figured that, Spectre," Shepard warily replies, not hiding the contempt from his voice. "Now what's really going on?"

Quick to avert an unnecessary argument, Anderson steps in, "We're here to pick something up from Eden Prime. Something that we don't want known that we have. It's why we have to keep the stealth systems up, why we are the only ship capable of succeeding on this mission."

"Why was I kept out of this until now, Captain," Shepard irritably asks.

"This comes from the top, Shepard. Far above our pay grade. Any information is on a strictly need-to-know basis."

"And now I need-to-know," Shepard warily asks.

"Yes, you do," Anderson matter-of-factly replies. "A research team on Eden Prime discovered a set of ruins. With some sort of beacon. One that is 50,000 years old."

"50,000 years old," Shepard interrupts. "That means it's Prothean." It was hard to keep the awe out of his voice. The Protheans had inhabited every corner of the galaxy 50,000 years ago, developed the Mass Relay technology and the Citadel itself, the very center of galactic society. Then they mysteriously vanished without a trace, leaving only their legacy and technology behind. It was this technology that Human scientists first discovered on Mars almost 40 years ago. It was the very technology that jumped Humanity's technology over 200 years and allowed them to discover the Charon Relay and explore the galaxy.

"That's right," Nihlus responds. "This obviously is a discovery that goes far beyond just Human interests. It could very well influence every species in Council space."

Shepard turns to his Captain and asks, "Why did we even tell the Council? We didn't need their help before, why would we now?"

"Because, Commander, sharing that beacon will improve our relations with the Council, which will further our cause in the galaxy. Also, they have more experience with Prothean technology than we do. They can help us," Anderson responds, wishing his XO would be more open-minded right now. Hard to do, after what happened in Shepard's past with other races. Kid always seemed to be out on the front-line, constantly fighting. Anderson knew from experience how much that can take a toll on someone. Shepard now was different, despite his potential to be so much more if he would just open his eyes and see it.

"Also," Nihlus adds, "there is another reason for me to be here, Commander."

"And why is that, might I ask," Shepard says, his voice dripping with sarcasm._ Probably just some more PR bullshit, as if I haven't had to endure enough of that in my life._

"I'm here to evaluate you, Shepard."

"What," Shepard exclaims, not quite able to keep the suspicion out of his voice. "What exactly do I need to be evaluated for?"

"This is big, Commander," Anderson exclaims, barely keeping the excitement out of his voice. "The Alliance has been pushing for this for a long time now. To finally show that we are ready for this. And you're the one to do it."

Confused as hell, Shepard looks at his commanding officer and the Spectre, blinking repeatedly. "Pardon my language, sir," he responds, voice dripping confused sarcasm now, "but what the hell is going on?"

Anderson and Nihlus exchange a knowing glance before looking back at Shepard. Not keeping his excitement and envy out of his voice, Anderson finally replies, "Nihlus is here to evaluate you for possible induction into the Spectres." Pausing, he looks over Shepard's face, trying to see any interest or excitement about this. And of course, he sees nothing but annoyance and anger. "Dammit, Dace, think about it. This could give Humanity a bigger say with the Citadel Council. The Spectres are the Council's voice of power and authority. Having a Human as a Spectre will go a long way in giving us that bigger say, maybe even eventually leading to a Council seat itself!" Seeing Shepard's mixture of anger and betrayal on his face, Anderson presses on. "Come on, Dace, you know this is a tremendous opportunity, and not just for Humanity."

Shepard could no longer contain himself, feeling betrayed. "Dammit, Captain, you know that I've been considering an early retirement. You know that I've been thinking strongly about getting out of the military, being a civilian again. I've been the Alliance's poster boy since Elysium, and I don't think that I can handle it anymore." He knew that he shouldn't be saying these things in front of the Spectre, but at this point Shepard didn't care. He didn't appreciate being blindsided. And he was being truthful, he'd seen enough in his ten years as a marine that he wanted to step out for a while, maybe have a shot at raising some semblance of a family, something that he never had before. And here was one of his mentors, hell the closest thing to a father that he had ever had, and he was trying to delay that even more. "Captain," Shepard begins again, trying to sound calmer than he was. "Spectres are supposed to be the best of the best. Why in the hell would they want a grunt like me?"

"Because, Shepard," Nihlus spoke up, "you have impressed people. Between your actions on Rakhana and Elysium, you proved yourself to have the necessary skills to become a Spectre. What you accomplished on Torfan proved that you could make the tough choices. Your courage, fortitude, skills, and unwillingness to give up and take the easy way out are exactly what we need. I am looking forward to working with you over the coming weeks, to assess your true potential. I don't think that I will be disappointed."

"Shepard, we need this, and I'm sorry, but you are the right one for the job," Anderson tells his friend, trying to mollify him somewhat. "Everyone in the Alliance brass knows it, and so…"

"Captain, we've got a problem," Joker's voice came over the comm, interrupting Anderson's further attempts at flattery. Shepard thought he was thankful for the interruption, until he heard the rest of the news.

"What is it, Joker," Anderson asks, annoyed at another interruption.

"Message incoming, from Eden Prime. You're gonna want to see this, sir," Joker says with a trace of shock coming from his voice. Immediately, Shepard was put on edge. Turning to the viewscreen that Nihlus had been looking at earlier, a grainy video popped up. Squinting his eyes better to see through the static, Shepard could hear the distinct sound of heavy gunfire and exploding shells. Shepard closed his eyes for a moment and imagined that he was back at Rakhana, watching his men die as he vainly fought to save someone who hadn't even wanted to go with him in the first place. He forced his eyes open, seeing a female marine race towards the camera, pushing the cameraman down and yells, "Get down!" Another explosion, and a different marine turned the camera towards his face, explains hysterically, "We're under attack! Taking heavy casualties. We…augh…we need immediate evac! They came out of nowhere! We need…." The marine stopped at his kinetic shields we suddenly overwhelmed and he took multiple shots to his chest, falling out of frame. An ominous mechanical sound was heard, and the rest of the marines all look up at the same time, seemingly oblivious to the continued gunfire and explosions that were going off all around them. The camera then panned slowly up to where they were looking, and Shepard's mouth opened in shock. A massive starship, vaguely looking like some sort of insect, or maybe a cuttlefish, broke through the clouds. Suddenly, an explosion went off very close to the camera and the picture went out.

"Everything cuts out after that, no comm traffic at all," Joker informs them. "It just goes dead, nothing at all."

"Joker, reverse and hold at 38.5." The screen went back to the unknown ship, and Anderson studied it some more. It looked eerily like a gigantic bluish-black metal hand, reaching down from the heavens to snatch up everyone below. "Status report!"

"Seventeen minutes out Captain," Joker reports. "No other Alliance ships in the area."

"Take us in, Joker, fast and quiet. This mission just got a lot more complicated," Anderson says, earning the award for understatement of the year.

"A small strike team can move quickly without attracting attention. It's our best chance to secure the beacon," Nihlus recommends.

"If whoever's on that ship hasn't secured it yet already," Shepard unnecessarily adds.

"Suit up and get down to the cargo hold," Anderson orders, talking to both of them despite not having the authority to order around the Turian Spectre. Turning to Shepard, he continues, "Go get Alenko and Jenkins, you're going in."

Shepard takes a long look at the viewscreen before snapping out of it and nodding his head, "Aye, Captain."

* * *

Burning flesh. It was a smell that no one should ever have to get used to. For some odd reason, it seemed to Shepard, it followed him wherever he went. _Everything burns_, he thinks to himself, _apparently even in paradise_. Moving quickly and quietly, leading his three man team with Alenko and Jenkins, he moved closer to the rising columns of smoke that seemed to be coming from the center of the colony. Nihlus was scouting out ahead, and had told them what to expect – a lot of dead bodies. They had already seen some, and with each body they came across Jenkins tensed up more and more. There was nothing that they could do for them now, though. They had to get that beacon, and Shepard wanted to beat that Spectre to the dig site, if only to show him who's better. Coming up on a partial clearing, he stopped behind a boulder and looked back at Jenkins. There were no emotions visible behind his faceplate, despite knowing that his hometown was just destroyed. Shepard didn't hold out much hope that Eden Prime was going to continue after this attack. He motioned Jenkins forward, pointing with his Karpov-brand pistol. Jenkins nervously nods his head, and clutching his standard-issue M7 Lancer-class assault rifle, moves out amongst the boulders dotting the clearing in the uphill path. Before he can react, two drones about the size of a man's torso roar down the hill, spitting out hyper-velocity bullets. The drones quickly overwhelm his kinetic shields, and rip into him before Shepard or Alenko can react.

Snapping out of it, Shepard peeks around the boulder he's using as cover and unloads at the two drones, ordering, "Kaidan, overload!"

"Aye, Commander," Alenko responds, tapping a few buttons on his omni-tool before pointing his arm at the drones. A bright, blue-white statical discharge envelopes the drones, instantly dropping their shields. Shepard takes advantage of this by hopping out of cover, his omni-tool flaring with a brilliant orange-yellow light, and an orange pulse shoots out at the two drones, the tech mine exploding between them and shattering them. He smiles for a moment before remembering, and turns to see Alenko already kneeling over Jenkin's body, closing his eyes. "Ripped right through his shields," Alenko reports to his long-time friend. "He never stood a chance, the damn bastards got him before he could react!"

Determination in his voice, Shepard replies, "Don't worry Kaidan, he will get the burial that he deserves. Whoever is behind this attack will wish they had never come here before I get done with them. C'mon, Nihlus can't be too far ahead of us now. Let's go find him."

Alenko just looks up at Shepard and nods his head. He still could not understand what drove Shepard to never give up, no matter how many he's lost.

* * *

She had never run so fast in her life. Lungs and legs burning alike, Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, the last surviving member of the 212 Unit of the 2nd Frontier Division of Eden Prime, ran for her life. She tried to not pay attention to the mass-accelerated slugs that were slamming into the ground all around her feet as she ran. The two drones that were following her were steadily gaining on her, no matter how hard she pushed herself. Then, something slams into her back, almost knocking her off-balance. _Shit, Ash, that took out your shields_, she tells herself. _Get hit again and you can kiss your sorry ass goodbye._ Deciding to make a stand, she dives for the ground, taking out her pistol on the way down. Rolling, she comes up on one knee and starts firing, her first two shots shredding the first drone, which in turn runs into the second one, sending them both to the ground in pieces. Managing a small smile, Williams is knocked back into reality when she hears a mechanical-whirring and clicking sound. Her smile quickly turns to horror when she sees two of those mechanical beings, the same kinds that had just wiped out her unit a few hours ago. They were holding a colonist, Rawlings she thought his name was, above some sort of mechanical object that was standing on three legs. Sheer terror is sprawled across Rawlings' face, and Williams gasps in horror as a metal spike rose out from the object, skewering Rawlings and raising the body about five meters. Unfortunately for her, the mechs overhear her terrified gasp, and quickly turn around, their single ocular lights scanning from side to side in the clearing. Williams quickly ducks behind a large boulder. but she knows it wasn't in time. Those mechs had certainly seen her. Pulling her assault rifle from her back, as it unfolded she says softly, "Well, this is it. See ya soon, dad!" She begins to swing out of hiding just like a star in those old actions vids from Earth when a blue streak flies past her face, straight into one of the mechs. The heavy round punches through its long neck, shearing its head completely off. Only then does she hear the thunderous report from the sniper rifle itself. The second mech turns with the speed that only a synthetic can manage, pulse rifle ready to spout death at whoever had taken out its partner. Before it could find a target and unload its pulse rifle, a concentrated blue orb of energy slams into its head, knocking it down. A marine, wearing the distinctive armor of an elite N7 Marine, suddenly sprints past her. He trains his heavy pistol on the synthetic and unloads an entire clip into its head. The optic shatters amongst a spray of white fluid and sparks.

"You're welcome, SIR," the marine said, voice dripping with the disapproval of a teacher scolding a student as he looks behind him.

"What," another N7 marine innocently asks, sauntering up to her and the other marine with an M-92 Mantis heavy sniper rifle propped up lazily on his shoulder. "I knew you had my back."

"Next time you should tell me what you're gonna do, so that I can be better prepared to save your ass, sir. I thought snipers weren't supposed to give away their position."

"Oh, c'mon Alenko! I didn't give away my position. I knew you would take out the second one before it found me," the sniper replies, a smart-ass grin on his face.

Williams tried in vain to catch her breath as the two marines walk over towards her, their friendly back and forth banter betraying a calm about the situation that she just did not feel. Not knowing what to do, Williams just stands there at attention, waiting for the two N7s to acknowledge her presence. Looking very closely at the two as they continue their banter back and forth, she catches herself staring at the taller of the pair._ I know that I've seen that face before_, she thinks to herself. Trying to rack her brain, she just couldn't figure it out. Maybe…

"You ok, soldier," asks the shorter of the pair. With his close to longer than regulation length black hair and faint Asian features, he definitely seemed to be the older of the two. She also caught the Staff Lieutenant stripes on his collar. Seems too old to have that rank, especially as an N7.

"Yes, sir," she replies nervously, barely able to catch her breath. "Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams of the 212, 2nd Frontier Division. Last one of my unit, I believe. Thank you for the help." She said the last part with sorrow and shame in her voice.

"This is Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko," the taller man replies, jerking his thumb at his companion, "and I'm Lieutenant Commander Dace Shepard of the SSV _Normandy_. What happened here, Williams? What's the sitrep?"

"Shepard? The 'Commander Shepard.' Of Elysium and Rakhana," she asks, unable to keep the awe out of her voice.

Annoyed, Shepard replies, "Yes, Williams. Now, focus. Sitrep."

_Crap_, she thinks to herself._ Good job at first impressions, no wonder I'm always stuck with these crap assignments, not even including the black listing_. "Sorry, sir. We were out on patrol about four klicks southwest of the beacon when we were ambushed by those mechs. Tried to make it back to the beacon, but I lost all my squad trying to get back. Once I got to the other side of this clearing, I was repelled by those drones."

"Is the beacon secure," Alenko asks, as always concerned with the mission.

"I don't know, Lieutenant. I didn't make it that far. The 232 was on guard duty this morning, but I haven't heard anything from them since we went out on patrol. We tried to send out a distress call, but I don't know if it was received by anyone."

"It was, Chief," Shepard replies, looking off in the distance towards where she had just said that the beacon was. "We got here as soon as we could." Determination steeled his voice. Not that he had ever entertained the thought of being in the Spectres, he still wasn't going to allow these synthetic bastards to ruin this mission. Giving up was never an option, not for the man who raised himself since his family died when he was six. He was a survivor, that's what he did. Even if all of those around him all died, like they almost always did. But he was damn sure going to do everything that he could to keep those that he could safe. No one deserved to grow up without family, alone and scared. It's something that never goes away, he knew that personally. Going off into his own world for a moment, he walks over to one of the fallen mechs, noting its flashlight-like head and sinewy synthetic muscles under the armor. Something clicked in the back of his head as Alenko asked Williams about what the beacon was, and Williams just told him the truth, that she had no idea what it really was except for that it glowed with a dim green and was Prothean._ Surely these can't be…_ he thought to himself. "Hey, Kaidan," Shepard calls out over his shoulder. "C'mere."

Alenko and Williams cautiously walk up behind him, and Alenko asks, "What is it, Commander?"

"Does this look like a Geth to you?"

Alenko looks confused at first, but then looks closely at the mech and realization crosses his face. "Oh my god. They are Geth! But they haven't been seen beyond the Veil in almost 300 years! Why are they here?"

"Think it has something to do with the beacon," Shepard asks to no one in particular.

"Could be," Alenko replies. "If it's really as important as everyone is making it out to be, then, yeah. The Geth might want it for themselves."

Turning to Williams, Shepard asks, "How far is the dig site, Chief?"

Pointing towards it, she replies, "Maybe about 400 meters that way. I had almost gotten there before I ran into those drones and had to make a run for it."

"I need you to take us there, Chief. No heroics, and no taking revenge. We have to secure that beacon, and I need your help."

"Aye aye, Commander," she replies, and starts off towards the dig site at the end of the ravine.

* * *

Shepard peers around the boulder, but quickly ducks back, awkwardly half-falling on Williams. _Thank god she's wearing armor_, he thinks._ She might have felt me feeling her up. Accidently, of course_. If he had been paying closer attention, he might have seen her smirk at the occurrence. Looking at Alenko, Shepard comments, "Lift 'em, LT."

"Aye aye, Commander," Alenko answers, and his entire body glows with a cyan bluish glow before he stands up and makes an upward gesture with his left arm. The three Geth troopers patrolling the dig site are all taken by dark energy, and lifted up as if they each began defying the laws of gravity. Shepard and Williams pop up out of cover and methodically take out the Geth as they float in the air.

The three walk up into the dig site, weapons at the ready, but they find nothing there, no trace of the beacon in sight. "I thought you said it was here, Williams," Shepard comments, the tension clear in his voice.

"It was here, Commander," Williams says defensively. "Someone must've moved it!"

"Yeah, but was it the scientists or the Geth," Alenko asks, alarm evident in his voice.

_As if this needs to get any worse_, Shepard thinks to himself. "If it was the scientists that moved it, where would they have taken it, Chief?"

"Up the hill is the scientist camp. It's also the same direction as the spaceport, which is where that massive ship seemed to land. It's this way," she says, pointing up a path in the hillside with her assault rifle. Shepard motions for her to lead the way, and she takes the point, Lancer at the ready. Too bad she doesn't have one of those Avengers, like Shepard has on his back right now. Supposedly they were light years ahead of the old M7s in terms of stopping power and accuracy. She loved her old rifle, but with how the day's events had gone, she would take whatever advantage she could get. Leading the way up the hill, she noticed what looked like the same spikes that Rawlings had been impaled on, complete with corpses on the ends. Holding up her arm to stop the two behind her quietly, she points at the spikes with her rifle to Shepard, who nods his head and quickly takes the point. Holding his pistol at the ready, Shepard cautiously moves forward. As he gets closer, the spikes begin to lower, bringing the bodies with them. Bodies that look like they have been augmented with cybernetic implants glowing with an eerie blue. "My god," Williams exclaims, "they're still alive!"

The bodies begin twitching, as if in response to Williams comment, and begin to get up from the platforms that they were lowered onto. Looking like typical old-school Hollywood zombies, the creatures, closer to husks of their former shells than anything, begin charging. Coldly, Shepard begins blasting away with his pistol, and shortly the thundering of William's assault rifle and the sharp blasts of Alenko's pistol join in. However, the husks prove resilient to their combined gunfire, and they refuse to go down easily. The third one manages to get close enough to Shepard that it sends out an electrical pulse that immediately wipes out Shepard's kinetic barriers. Alarmed, Shepard tries to shoot the husk at point-blank range, but of course his pistol is conveniently out of thermal clips. "To hell with this," he exclaims, and uses his gun as a melee weapon, clubbing the husk until its head caves in. Breathing heavily, he looks over his shoulder at Alenko and asks him, "What the fuck were those things?"

"I don't know, Commander. Looks like the Geth have found a way to turn organics into some sort of zombie cyborgs. I'm not likin' this, sir."

"And you think I am? Williams, you think there might be any scientist left in these buildings here?"

"Maybe, Commander. Only one way to be sure, I guess."

"Right," Shepard replies. "Lead the way, Alenko. I'm sure if there's any survivors they will have locked the doors. Your job to unlock them, Mr. Sentinel."

"Aye aye, Commander," Alenko replies, his sarcasm matching Shepard's. He goes up to the first building and attempts to open the door. After working with the controls, Alenko easily unlocks the door and Williams bursts in, rifle at the ready. Shepard and Alenko follow her in, only to find a pool of blood in a darkened room, with it smeared over behind the bed. Shepard quickly scans the room, and points towards the bed with his pistol.

"Stay behind me," he says, cautiously following the trail of blood as Williams quickly moves in behind him and to his left. Stopping above the mattress, the quiet is broken by a muffled sob. Looking over his shoulder to Williams, he exchanges a nod with her and quickly pulls the mattress off. Williams quickly ducks under Shepard's arm, covering the Commander, but they only find one of the scientists, clutching his mangled shoulder and curled up in the fetal position.

"Wait, please, don't hurt me!"

Shepard holsters his pistol and touches Williams on the shoulder, reassuring her to back off. Alenko quickly kneels down before the scientist and begins administering medi-gel to the wounds. "Easy now, you're in good hands. Try to relax."

"How can I relax when we are on the eve of despair? The twilight of the end is upon us! The mad prophet has arrived with his army of minions. The reckoning is here!"

Shepard and Williams exchange a confused look at the man's mad ramblings. "What are you talking about, sir?" Williams gives Shepard a strange look, amazed at the many facets of the Commander that she had seen so far – the determined marine, the wise-crack smartass, and now the compassionate concerned caretaker. "Mad prophet, army of minions? I assume the army is the Geth, but who is this prophet," Shepard continues.

"The prophet of our doom! The Turian with the glowing eyes of the damned! The leader of synthetic army! The herald of the new age! No one will be spared, no one!"

"Turian? I don't know of any Turians in the colony, I would have noticed their kind before," Williams states, a taste of disgust in her voice. Shepard gives her a look, noticing the slight tone and concerned by it.

"Nihlus maybe? We haven't seen him since we touched down," Alenko offers, trying to make sense of the confused man's ramblings.

"No, I don't think it's Nihlus. He was with us when the attack came. We weren't even in the system yet," Shepard replies. Turning to the man he softly asks, "Do you know what happened to the beacon? The Prothean artifact that was discovered here?"

"It was moved before the army of darkness arrived! But it doesn't matter. They landed at the spaceport. It was preordained long ago! Nothing will stop the coming horde!"

"Dope him up, Alenko," Shepard orders, jaw clenched from the stress of the situation. It was always hard to see civvies under shell shock. They didn't deserve to see the horror of war, but they always seemed to be the ones that suffered. Just like on Rakhana.

"You sure, Commander?"

"Yes. We don't want him hurting someone, much less himself. We need to get to that beacon."

"Aye aye, sir." Alenko gives him a shot in the arm, and they leave, re-locking the shack behind them.

* * *

_This doesn't make any sense_, Nihlus thought to himself as he stealthily moved towards the spaceport. None of this makes any sense. Geth, beyond the veil? For what purpose? What would Geth want with a 50000 year old Prothean beacon? They hadn't been heard from or seen since they drove their Quarian creators from Rannoch three lifetimes ago. And when had they learned how to raise the dead? Those zombie-like creatures that they created out of the Human colonists were horrific to see. He had pumped shot after shot into them and they still kept coming at him. Only one of them had gotten close though, and his side still ached from the hit he took. Definitely cracked his carapace. He hoped the Human medical officer aboard the Normandy, Chakwas he thought her name was, had experience with Turians. He knew the wound was superficial, but he didn't want to take any chances aboard an alien vessel. Quietly moving up the ramp to the loading ramp of the tram station, Nihlus crouches behind a stack of crates. He had noticed a being wandering around that didn't seem to be a Geth and was too tall to be a Human. Peering around the crate, surprise washes over his black and white face. Surely that can't be… "Saren? What are you doing here?"

The gray-skinned Turian turns around, synthetic eyes glowing an eerie bright blue. Wearing armor that was the same sickly color as his leathery skin, and with a left arm that looked too closely like the arm of one of Eden Prime's attackers, Saren Arterius carefully regards the new arrival. With the confidence born of being regarded as the greatest Spectre to ever work for the Council, Saren saunters up to his fellow Turian. "Nihlus…the Council decided that you might need help on this one my friend." Smirking with arrogance, Saren places his hand on Nihlus' shoulder as he walks past him. "Looks they were right. Leave it up to the Humans to alert the Geth to a discovery like this."

"This makes no sense Saren," Nihlus says, continuing past his friend. "Why would the Geth care about this place? This is bad, this colony is lost, and the beacon is nowhere to be found."

Saren turns around and regards his fellow Spectre with cold eyes. Nihlus always did drop his guard at the wrong time. He never understood what must be done. "Don't worry old friend," Saren coldly says, drawing his pistol. "Everything is under control…"

* * *

Carefully walking down the path towards the tram station, Williams cautiously leads her new team. She couldn't believe the cruel twist of fate that God always played on her. The same day that she gets to meet the Commander Dace Shepard, the greatest hero that not just the Alliance, but the entire Earth, had ever known, is the same day that she lost her entire unit, and he had to save her from dying not because she was fighting for her life, but because she was running for it. If Shepard seemed to judge her for it, he seemed to not be showing it, but she was sure that he did. If there was one constant in the universe, it was that the Williams family was judged, and harshly, for anything and everything wrong that they did. Glancing back at Shepard, she did note with satisfaction that he was every bit as handsome in person as he was in the vids. Alenko wasn't too bad himself either, but he didn't nearly have the charisma that the Commander had._ Oh stop it, Ash. Getting shot in the head because you're too into your own personal fantasies_…Williams stopped in mid-thought as the sharp report of a pistol blast cut through the air. It seemed to come straight from the tram station._ Looks like there's some action going on at the station_. Coming around a bend, she instantly stops and begins gawking at the horizon. A deafening roar comes from the distance, seemingly accompanied by the unholy shriek of the damned.

"What is it Chief? Why'd you…" Shepard trails off mid-question as he looks over Williams shoulder, seeing what has seemingly frozen her in place. Far on the horizon, maybe four to five klicks out, looms a massive starship. Seemingly emanating an unearthly rumbling and shrieking sound it lifts off, a trail of fire left in its wake.

"What the hell is that," Alenko asks, a strange mixture of awe and fear in his voice.

Shepard can't help but to watch as the massive ship accelerates, blasting off from the planet's surface. It's definitely the same ship as was in the distress call. The damn thing was easily two kilometers long itself. Nothing that massive should have been able to land on the surface of a planet, much less liftoff again. The Geth were obviously much more advanced than anyone else had thought before. Seemingly pulled by an unknown force, he begins walking forward, trying to keep line-of-sight with the fleeing ship as it rises higher and higher. So focused was he on the ship that he at first didn't hear the warnings of his fellow soldiers. "Look out, Shepard," he finally hears Alenko exclaim as he looked down into the face of an advancing husk, no more than five feet from him. Shepard braced himself as it rushed forward, its arm raised and swinging down rapidly, going for a wide swipe to his face. The blow never impacted as the mass accelerated rounds from Williams assault rifle slamms into the husk's neck, blowing its head clear off, ichor spraying everywhere. Snapping out of his funk, Shepard draws his pistol and begins blasting away at the other two husks that were running towards his squad. As the last husk fell from a biotic warp attack courtesy of Alenko, impacts against his kinetic barriers alerted him to a new problem. Ducking behind a boulder, Shepard draws out his rifle and lays on his belly in the grass. Zooming in with his scope, he squeezes the trigger, shearing off the head of a Geth trooper firing on Williams' position. Smirking, Williams pops up out of cover and begins peppering the remaining Geth's shields with fire, overwhelming them until the barriers collapse. The rounds drill a hole straight through its center, breaking the metallic spine and severing all important functions before overloading the synthetic's brain.

Shepard makes one more sweep of the tram station with his rifle before focusing in on the body that he saw the first time. Seeing his fears come to fruition, he confirms that it's the body of the Turian Spectre, Nihlus. A pool of blue blood lies around the Spectre's head, indicating that the pistol shot that they had heard a moment ago was an assassination. Holstering his rifle, Shepard draws his pistol and cautiously runs down the hillside, alert for any Geth or husks that might be lurking about. Making it to the station, he kneels before Nihlus' body and confirms his fears that death has already taken the Spectre. However, he still says to Alenko, "LT check for vitals. If there's anything that we can do…"

"Don't worry, Commander. I'll do whatever I can," Alenko replies, kneeling beside the body to check it, just to make sure.

"A Turian," Williams questions, wondering how the alien arrived on Eden Prime without her hearing it through the rumor mill. "You guys know this alien?"

Shepard stands up and solemnly looks at the young Chief. "Yes we did Williams. He was a Council Spectre, name was Nihlus. He seemed to be a good man. He was supposed to help us to secure the beacon, among other things…"

Alenko finishes his scans and stands up, looking at his friend with a grim look on his face. He imperceptibly shakes his head no and says, "Sorry, Commander. Nothing I can do for him."

Shepard looks off in the distance, surveying the wreckage. _Just what the hell do we do now?_ "Well, this mission is FUBAR."

"Hear that, Shepard," Alenko agrees, getting up from the fallen Spectre. "What's the plan now?"

"If the beacon is still on the ground, then it's probably at the spaceport now. Seems the logical step to take at this point, Commander," Williams offers, trying to be of some help but knowing that Shepard was getting more and more pissed by the minute at this point. Shepard looks off in the direction that she was pointing, towards the nearby tram. After a moment's consideration, Shepard nods his head and she begins to lead them off. "Right this way, gentlemen."

* * *

A silver-white Geth trooper with blue tubing surrounding its body rises up from a silver cylinder with a control pad sitting on the side of the tramway. It turns to another trooper and says something in their chittering language. Saren strides up to it after disembarking from the tram and orders, "Set the charges. Make sure no one survives."

The Geth chitters some more and nods its head, blinking its single optic at the same time. It turns around, ready to do its master's bidding, while Saren purposefully strides off. Going through the burning remains of the spaceport, the former Spectre walks up to a totem sitting in the center of the gangway, glowing with an eerie green light. As he gets closer to the totem, his body is enveloped by the same glowing green light, and he is lifted up and suspended in the air as if he was being crucified.

* * *

"Keep it up, they're pushing," Shepard shouts at Williams, firing away at the charging Geth with his heavy pistol.

"They really don't want us to disarm this last one, do they," Williams sarcastically asks as she sprays mass-accelerated slugs into the synthetics.

"Well then, we'll just have to disappoint them, won't we?"

Smirking, Williams readies a fragmentation grenade, shouts, "Grenade," and tosses it in the middle of a cluster of three Geth. Unable to react in time to the short fuse, they are all knocked back by the explosion. With the skill of an expert marksman, Shepard takes three shots with his pistol, catching each one of the Geth in their lone optic.

"Got it, Commander," Alenko finally shouts as he gets up from the final bomb and wipes his forehead with the back of his hand. _Guess it was really getting to me, huh Kaidan,_ he thinks to himself as Williams takes down the final Geth trooper with a staccato burst of her assault rifle. "Geth weren't playing around, were they? I would say that one of those damn bombs would have taken out this colony. But four of them?"

"Guess they wanted to ensure that they finished the job Kaidan," Shepard replies, his voice strained with tension. "Seems to me that they did a good enough job without them."

"True that, Commander."

"Hey Commander, LT, c'mere!"

Sighing, Shepard follows Alenko towards the beacon and the overenthusiastic Chief.

"Amazing," Alenko exclaims. "Actual working Prothean technology! I never thought I would see anything like it!"

"It wasn't doing anything like that before when it was dug up," Williams adds enthusiastically.

Shepard takes a look at the beacon and shakes his head._ Hope it's worth all the death it's caused so far_, he thinks to himself. _But when has it ever been worth it. All the death I've seen, tried to stop, hell even been a part of. When has it been worth it?_ Touching his ear, he calls into the comm, "Normandy, this is Shepard. The beacon is secure, awaiting pickup."

"Aye, aye Commander," Joker replies in the comm, at once sounding professional yet laid back at the same time. "ETA 10 minutes. How's the LZ lookin'?"

Shepard turns around as Alenko walks up to him and continues, "LZ is secure for the moment, scanners aren't picking up any stragglers at the moment."

Meanwhile, Williams continues to get closer to the beacon. Suddenly, an eerie green glow surrounds Williams, and begins pulling her towards the beacon. Looking over Alenko's shoulder, Shepard practically shoves his friend across the floor, sprints towards Williams, and snatches her out of the air, throwing her back towards Alenko in one smooth motion. Before he can react, however, the beacon envelops him and raises him up before anyone else can react. Alenko kneels by Williams, trying to make sure she is alright before she notices that Shepard has been raised by the beacon.

"Shepard," Williams exclaims, trying to get up and save the person who just saved her, from what she did not know.

"No," Alenko exclaims, holding her down. "It's too dangerous! We don't know what'll happen if we cut him off from it!"

Flashes, beings being tortured, wiped out, synthetics killing them, altering them, harvesting them. Planets being wiped out and invaded by machines. Shepard saw all of this and more, but none of it made any sense to him. Just as the visions ended, Shepard is thrown back by the beacon as it explodes in a wave of green energy and sparks. His head lands on the metal floor of the spaceport with a sickening thud. Alenko and Williams both rush to Shepard's prone form lying on the ground. Williams begins to move him, but Alenko grabs her arm. "No, no! Don't move him! We don't know what kind of trauma he's suffered. We need to keep him still until we get him back on the Normandy."

Nervously, Williams waits around for the Normandy, hoping that the ship would hurry up and get there.


	2. The Citadel

Sorry this chapter took so long to upload. 60+ hours a week at work is not very forgiving. Here's to hoping the next chapter doesn't take as long to finish.

* * *

**THE CITADEL**

The menacing ship glides through space, no worse for the wear from all the terror and death that it just caused. Inside, the turian traitor, Saren, sits brooding. _I wonder what he thinks of, when he's sitting there for hours. Is it galactic conquest? Or guilt over the deaths he's caused. I wonder if I will ever know. Or if I even want to know._

Clearing her throat, the revered asari saunters up to her commander. Gracefully moving in her very tight, very revealing black dress, she reports in an authoritative, diplomatic tone, "My commandoes have managed to ID the Alliance frigate that was the first responder to Eden Prime. SSV _Normandy_. It is under the command of Captain David Anderson. His shore party managed to defuse your bombs and save the colony."

Snapping his head around, Saren menacingly looks at the stunning woman, as if she should be ashamed of interrupting his musing. "And the beacon," his almost synthetic voice asks.

The woman hangs her head and solemnly replies, "One of the humans might have used it before it was destroyed." Seeing the look on his face, she cringes slightly before she regains her stoicism. _This is going to be bad_.

Saren quickly gets up, and with a thunderous, "RARRRGGGHHHH," he begins smashing and throwing whatever he can get his hands on until he comes right up on the asari and grabs her head in both hands. Quivering in anger, he slowly orders, "Find out who this human soldier is, and eliminate him. Now."

* * *

Haziness. And a rhythmic pounding. _Is this what it means to be dead?_ Trying to open his eyes, all he sees at first is a blurry white light. _Yeah, definitely dead._ _At least it's not those horrid images of death and destruction that I had been seeing…_

"Doctor! Doctor Chakwas! I think he's waking up!"

_Good god, that was loud_. _That voice is vaguely familiar, where the hell am I?_ A shadow crosses over his blurry vision, and after blinking what seems to be a few hundred times, it slowly resolves itself into the face of a beautiful young woman, again vaguely familiar. _At least I went to heaven._ Shepard tries to get up, and the woman gently grabs his arm and helps him. Gingerly, he swings his feet around to the side of the bed.

"We were worried about you, Shepard. We were wondering if you would ever wake up," an even more familiar voice comes in, much more motherly and professional than the last one. And thankfully much, much quieter. "How are you feeling?"

"Ugh," Shepard replies, groaning as he sits there, holding himself up on the side of the bio-bed. "Like the morning after shore-leave. How long was I out?"

Smirking, knowing that Shepard's comment was his attempt at levity and showed that he was going to be ok, Doctor Karin Chakwas replies, "Glad to hear it. You were out for about 15 hours, give or take. Something happened with that beacon, I think."

"It was my fault, sir," that familiar voice once again came back. Somehow, it managed to be scared and obnoxious at the same time. "I must have triggered it somehow. Set it off. You had to throw me out of the way, then it took you. After it did whatever it was that it did, it exploded. Might have been a system overload, but we don't know for sure. We didn't stick around long enough to find out. I-I'm sorry sir."

Looking over at Williams as if confused why she was there, Shepard decided that she was beating herself up enough on her own. No need for me to dress her down right now, even if it would be justified. "It's all right, Chief. You had no way of knowing what would happen if you got that close." Shepard turned his attention back to the Doctor, missing Williams looking down and blushing at the Commander's tender tone. "So Doc, what's the damage that you're patching me up from this time?"

Chakwas rolls her eyes and smirks, thinking that this is getting tiresome. Seems like she always has to patch Shepard up physically one way or another. "Physically, you're fine. Mentally, however, is another story. I detected some unusual brain activity and abnormal beta waves. I also noticed some intense rapid eye movement. All of which normally suggests intense dreaming. I would assume that it's connected with the beacon in some way. What happened while it had control over you?"

Looking down in deep thought, Williams could have sworn that she saw Shepard's eyes go a million miles away. For a moment, she thought that was just daydreaming when his voice suddenly started softly and mournfully.

"I saw…. I don't know what I saw. Death, destruction. Synthetics, maybe? And giant black hands, reaching down from the sky. I don't know. I'm not really sure, it's all blurring together."

Realizing she wasn't going to get any more out of the XO, Chakwas just replied, "Hmm. I'll have to add it to my report. It may…oh, Captain Anderson." She cuts herself off as the _Normandy'_s commanding officer strolls into the medical bay.

"How's our XO holding up, Karin," Anderson asks, his voice showing a balance between complete authority and friendliness with the doctor.

"All the readings are good, Captain," Chakwas replied. "I think the commander's going to be fine. I'm giving him a full release from my care."

"Glad to hear it, doctor. Now, if both of you'll excuse us, I need to talk to my XO in private," Anderson kindly asked, even though everyone in the room could tell that it was definitely an order.

"Yes, sir," Chakwas said simply, and moved towards the door.

Williams lingered for a moment before saluting and saying, "I'll be in the mess if you need anything, sir." The Chief directed the comment towards Anderson, but stole a quick glance at Shepard before Anderson returned her salute.

"Of course, Chief. Dismissed." Watching her leave for a moment, Anderson turned back to see Shepard watching her leave as well, with both confusion as to why Williams was even aboard the _Normandy_, as well as an appreciation stemming from some baser instincts, if the look on his face could be trusted. "Wondering why the Chief is here, Dace? Or just admiring the view," Anderson asks with a mirthful, fatherly tone.

Completely aware of the regulations and punishments for fraternization, Shepard's face turns quickly to stone. "Just wondering why she is here, Captain. Not that she doesn't deserve it, she proved that she's a hell of a soldier down there. She's good enough for the _Normandy_, if first impressions are anything to go by. She looked good in action too, sir."

"Yeah, I'll bet," Anderson sarcastically replies. "Luckily, Lt. Alenko agrees with you. I'm assigning her to the _Normandy_ permanently, since we needed to replace what we lost."

Shepard's gut turns to stone as he thinks of Jenkins, lying dead in that field. Looking down with shame, Shepard says, "I don't like losing anyone under my command. I should've been more careful. The entire place looked like a setup, I should have been the one to take point. Not him. I shouldn't have even taken him along, he was distracted by his home burning all around him. I…"

Anderson places his hand on his XO's shoulder and his face becomes somber. "Dace, stop it. Alenko told me what happened. There was nothing that you could have done in that situation. Beating yourself up for it is not going to do you or anyone else a damn bit good, now or ever." Reluctantly, Shepard looks up and meets his eyes before nodding his head once. "Good. Now tell me what the hell happened with that beacon. It doesn't look good, Shepard. A dead Spectre, our most important colony in ruins, and a beacon destroyed. The Council's going to want some answers."

"I'll tell you what happened, Captain," Shepard replies, getting defensive. _ Great, now I'm going to be the scapegoat. _ "The Geth walked right over the colonial defenses as if they weren't even there. They had a Turian with them. A dockworker said Nihlus knew him, called him Saren. He murdered Nihlus."

"I know, Shepard. Lt. Alenko had all of that in his report. What I need to know about is what happened with the beacon. What the hell did it do to you, and what caused it to explode?"

"I don't know, Captain," Shepard wearily replies. Pausing to collect his thoughts, Shepard bows his head and closes his eyes, willing the images seared into his mind to reorient themselves and make sense. "Williams had gotten too close to it, I guess. Activated it somehow. Damn thing began glowing green and pulling her towards it. I didn't think about it, really. Did the only thing that made any sense to me – I got to her and pulled her away, threw her back towards Alenko. Before I could react, damn thing got a hold of me, lifted me up. I saw images, a vision maybe. Death, destruction. Synthetics wiping out organic, altering them somehow. And hands, giant black hands reaching down from the sky. And then nothing. Next thing I know, I'm waking up to Williams standing over me on the biobed." Shepard lifts his head back up, looking at his mentor, the closest thing that he's ever had to a father, and sees a mixture of frustration and concern. Whether or not it was for him or because of him, Shepard couldn't figure. Running his hands over his stubble-filled face and through his short, brown hair, Shepard continued, "I really don't know Captain. I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry about, Shepard. I just wish we had more to go on. Maybe your vision and the fact that Saren was there…"

"My vision? The Council's not gonna want to lift a goddamn finger on account of me having bad dreams. We are FUBAR on this Anderson."

"I know that Shepard, but listen to me," Anderson sternly says. "You don't know Saren. I do. He hates Humans, and if he's aligned himself with the geth this could spell disaster for every colony out here. Hell, Earth wouldn't even be safe from him. He's the best, most ruthless Spectre that we know about. If he's targeting Humanity like I think he is, then we are in trouble. And who knows what information that beacon could hold. New means of biological warfare, or maybe even the blueprints for an ancient weapon of mass destruction, could have been locked away in that beacon, and Saren could have that information right now. We have to act on this."

Skeptical, Shepard asks, "And how are we gonna do that, sir? You just said, Saren's their best Spectre. They aren't going to take our word and my bad dream."

"I know, Shepard. But we have to do something. If Saren allied himself with the geth, they we don't have a choice. The Council needs to know that he's gone rogue. We should be coming up on the Citadel. I'll contact the Ambassador and see if we can get an audience with the Council. Go up to the bridge and tell Joker to bring us into dock."

Shepard nods at his commanding officer and replies, "Aye, aye, sir." They leave the medical bay together, with Anderson taking a right to cut through the mess hall towards his office as Shepard continues towards the stairwell.

"Hey, Commander! Got a minute?"

_Well, at least it doesn't sound as loud and obnoxious anymore_. Trying to find a levity and confidence that he just didn't feel at the moment, Shepard stops and turns to Williams. _Didn't think I'd ever see her scared before_. "Whatcha need, Williams?"

Nervously, she replies, "Glad you're ok, Commander. The crew could use some good news after what happened to Jenkins. I feel terrible about what happened to him, and that I'm replacing…" _My God, I don't remember his eyes being that blue before. With his dark hair and looks like that, he reminds me of that British agent in those old vids…_

"Stop right there, Chief. Losing Jenkins is hard. He was a damn good man and soldier. He will be missed by this entire crew. He can never be replaced. But that does not mean that you don't deserve to be here. You're a hell of a soldier, and proved that down there. So stop beating yourself up for something that wasn't your fault and that you had no damn way of stopping to begin with."

"I…thank you sir. I'll try to live up to the faith that you're putting in me."

"I know you will, Chief. How are you holding up? I know it's not easy to lose your entire squad."

Williams looks down, shame crossing her face again. "I'm making it, sir." Looking back up at Shepard, she continues, "It's not easy losing those under your command. And it's never easy to see dead civilians. But you don't need me to tell you that, sir. After what you went through on Akuze, you know damn well the helpless feeling that I have right now." Wrapping her arms around herself, she begins to turn away before Shepard places a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, I know how you're feeling right now. But you have to understand that it wasn't your fault. You did everything you could down there." Shepard sighs to himself. _Didn't I just get this pep talk from Anderson?_ "We saved a lot of people down there. People that we couldn't have saved without you."

"Thank you, Commander," Williams responds, looking very relieved. "It's always nice to be made to feel welcome to a new post. I'll try not to let you down."

"Good to hear, Williams. Now why don't you walk with me to the bridge. Gotta make sure our crazy pilot actually gets us to the Citadel in one piece."

Looking a little flustered, Williams responds, "Lead the way, Commander."

* * *

"Damn good timing, Commander," and entirely too jovial Joker teases. "Now you're gonna be able to see our taxpayer dollars at work.

As Shepard looks out the viewscreen, the _Normandy_ drops out of FTL and glides smoothly towards the awaiting Mass Relay. A tendril of bluish dark energy snakes out to the small ship, enveloping it before it slingshots her out of the system. Moments later, _Normandy_ arrives at another Mass Relay that is enveloped by grayish-white clouds. Deftly working the controls, Joker pilots the stealth frigate, and Shepard and Williams spy splotches where the nebula is thin and glimpses of the massive space station can be seen. Soon, a break in the clouds appears and the heart of Council space dramatically appears. Opened up like a giant flower with five massive petals, the Citadel easily dwarfs any other station ever built. Flying into its open mouth, the _Normandy_ glides past the Citadel fleet, holding the line at the mouth of the station, defying anyone to attempt harm.

"Holy shit, look at the size of that ship," Williams exclaims when she sees the massive asari contribution to the Citadel fleet.

Calmly explaining to her, as if everyone has seen the ship, Alenko says, "It's the _Destiny Ascension._ Flagship of the Citadel fleet."

"Size isn't everything, Chief," Joker remarks, feeling a little too defensive.

"Why so touchy, Joker? Feeling a bit intimidated? Or maybe just inadequate," Williams jeers the pilot.

"I'm just sayin' you need firepower, too!"

"Are you looking at the same thing that I am, flyboy? Look at the size of that gun. That could rip through the barriers of any ship in the Alliance fleet in one shot!"

"Good thing it's on our side then, huh," Alenko adds, delighted that he gets to add to Joker's misery. "I bet with how long the asari live, they have the best pilots out there too. In fact,…"

"It is so important to your future that you stop spreading your ignorance, LT."

"Or what, Joker? You'll break your arm at me?"

"Hah," Shepard barks a laugh out, finally breaking his silence during the banter. Before anyone can say anything else as the _Normandy _cruises inward towards the Presidium ring that holds the arms of the Citadel together, Citadel Control cuts in.

"This is Citadel Control, please state the nature of your visit to the Citadel."

_Shit, forgot to call in our approach._ Quickly, Joker replies, "Citadel Control, this is SSV _Normandy_, requesting clearance to dock."

"Stand by, _Normandy_. Clearance granted. You may begin your approach. Transferring you now to an Alliance operator," Control orders.

"_Normandy_, this is Alliance Tower. Proceed to docking bay 442."

Guiding the _Normandy_ towards the appropriate bay, Joker responds, "Roger that, Tower. _Normandy_ out."

* * *

"This is an outrage," the hologram of the frail human ambassador shouts emphatically as he slams his hand on his desk. _And they wonder why we don't let them join the Council. I bet he hurt his poor little hand_. Sparatus, the turian Councilor shakes his head ever so slightly as Udina continues his rant. "The Council would come in force if the geth attacked a turian colony!"

Fortunately for Udina, the salarian Councilor Valern stepped in before Sparatus could rip into the frail human. "The turians don't found colonies on the borders of the Terminus Systems, Ambassador.

Holding out her hand, using her most diplomatic voice, the asari Councilor Tevos adds, "Humanity was well aware of the risks when your people founded colonies in the Traverse."

Angrily shaking his holographic head, Udina angrily retorts, "Well what about Saren? You can't just ignore a rogue Spectre! I demand action!" This was too much for Sparatus to handle. _This frail simpleton, really thinks he can stand there and threaten us, with his fist clenched in rage and shaking it at us, the Council?"_

"You don't get to make demands of the Council, Ambassador," Sparatus rebukes, adding venom to the title. _Arrogant little prick_.

Calmly, as if she could sweep away all of the hostility building in the room, Tevos adds, "Citadel Security is investigating your charges against Saren. We will discuss the C-Sec findings at the hearing…not before." Waving her hand in front of the pedestal before her, she ends the transmission, and Udina's image fades away. She looks back and forth at her fellow Council members. "What do you think, Valern?"

Stroking his chin, Valern thoughtfully yet cautiously replies, "I'm not sure. Only time will tell if there is any evidence against Saren. Time we do not have to look for it."

"Saren wouldn't betray the Council," Sparatus steps in, eager to save Saren's good name. "He has done more for this Council than anyone ever has."

* * *

Udina paces around his desk, trying to unclench his fists of rage. _Goddamn Council. Pog mo thoin, they can._ He stops his pacing when he hears the whoosh of the doors opening. _About damn time_. Looking at the new arrivals, he notes with dissatisfaction that it's not just Anderson. _Now I'm going to have to try to be civilized instead of giving this man a piece of my mind_. "Captain Anderson. I see you brought your whole crew with you." The marine in the middle, the one who he knows to be Lt. Commander Dace Shepard, the man that Anderson and Hackett both put forward as their great Spectre candidate. _He looks like a man who would screw up a mission_.

Quickly on the defensive, Anderson holds up his hands in a defensive posture. _Great, he's already pissy. Guess his meeting with the Council didn't go well_. "Not the whole crew, Ambassador. Just the ground team from Eden Prime. In case you had any questions for them."

Udina sneers at the remark. "I have the mission reports," he derisively says as he stalks around the desk towards his visitors. "Unless the good Commander is here to tell me that he falsified his reports and that the mission did not end in an unqualified disaster with the beacon destroyed and an alleged rogue Spectre agent behind the attack." Shepard just stands at attention, both Alenko and Williams eyeing him closely.

Stepping in, Anderson replies, "Yes, of course they are accurate. Did you bring them to the Council?"

"Yes I did. They weren't happy about it, but they agreed to have at least a hearing. Saren's their top agent. It does not look good for them if he is accused of treason." Udina turns around, back towards his desk but is stopped when Shepard finally speaks up.

"I don't care how it looks for them. I'm not going to sit on my ass while the Council make believes that they are going to do anything about it. If they don't stop Saren, then I will."

Udina eyes the young Spectre candidate warily before replying, "Settle down, Commander. You've already done everything you can to jeopardize your candidacy for the Spectres. Don't make it any worse for yourself. This mission was a chance for you to prove that you can get the job done and join the galaxy's elite. Instead, Nihlus is dead and the beacon was destroyed."

"That's not his fault, it's Saren's," Anderson steps in.

"Then we better hope that C-SEC turns up some damn solid evidence against him. Because a smuggler's statement and a bad dream are not enough to convince anyone of anything. If we make this accusation formally and fail, it could give the turians all the excuse that they need to keep you out of the Spectres, in which case all of humanity loses. Now I have preparations to make before the hearing. Captain, come with me. Shepard, meet us at the hearing in one standard hour at the Citadel Tower, top level. I'll make sure you can get in. Do me a favor. Don't be late."

"Asshole," Williams says under her breath as soon as the door begins closing as Udina and Anderson leave the room. A little more loudly she says, "and that's why I hate politicians."

Shepard smirks as he walks towards the door. "Alright, let's see what trouble we can get into on the Presidium before we get to go get bitched out by the Council."

* * *

Walking down the stairwell, Shepard couldn't help it. He couldn't keep the smirk off of his face. And seeing the flash of jealousy on Williams' face made it that much better. _She's not very good at hiding things. Better watch yourself around her. If you could only stop watching her ass. I don't remember the off-duty uniforms being so form-fitting…_

"Get everything you need, Commander," Alenko politely asks, rudely breaking into Shepard's inner monologue. _He knows me too damn well_.

"I don't know if it's everything that I need, Alenko. But the Consort needs my help. So I'm gonna give it to her."

Williams snorts out a laugh before sarcastically saying, "Yeah right, Commander. I'm sure your help isn't all your gonna give to her."

"Watch that tone, Chief," Alenko chastises her as they leave the Consort Chambers and hail a cab. "That's your Commander you're talking to."

Williams looks down and quickly replies, "Sorry Commander. Not my place to say anything."

"Don't worry about it, Chief. I know what it looks like. However, contrary to popular belief, I do have a little bit of self control. And it does no good to turn down a potential ally. Who knows, I help Sha'ira out not, she could do me a favor sometime down the road. You should never burn a bridge, even if it is close to sinking."

"Aye, aye, sir," Williams replies.

Arriving at the Citadel Tower, they disembark from the cab as Shepard stops Williams. "And another thing. Stop calling me sir. Call me Shepard, or Commander if you have to retain some sort of formality."

Stammering, Williams manages to get out, "Yes, sir, I mean Commander Shepard, er, um, yeah."

"Relax, Chief," Alenko cuts in, looking to calm the young Gunnery Chief down. "He'd prefer being called "Dipshit" any day of the week over "Sir."

Smirking at his friend as they walk through the entryway of the Citadel Tower, Shepard rebukes, "Only by you, Kaidan. And only on Thursdays." Slowing as they continue up some stairs, they come up on two turians, clearly with C-SEC uniforms on, arguing in the midst of blocking everyone's way.

"Stall them," the first turian pleads, his gravelly voice enhancing his desperation on his gray face with blue clan markings. _Bet his voice gets him all the ladies_, Shepard thinks to himself. "I just need a little more time to find the information I need to peg that smug bastard to the wall, Spectre or not. I can nail him, just give me more time."

"You don't get to stall the Council, Garrus," the other one replies, clearly the former's boss. "Not when you don't have a guarantee of proof."

Shepard slows as he comes up to the pair, especially when a certain name is dropped.

"Saren is hiding something. I know it. We can't let him get away with this," Garrus pleads, knowing that he is losing his case.

"Too bad. Let me know when you have concrete evidence. Until then, get out of the Council's way. The greatest Spectre in Council history is not an enemy you want to make.

Garrus looks down in disgust as his superior walks away before realizing that he had a crowd. Looking up, he quickly recognizes the most famous human in the Alliance. "Commander Shepard. My name is Garrus Vakarian. C-SEC. I understand that you are the one who just repelled Saren's attack on Eden Prime."

"Yeah, something like that."

Nodding his head, looking like he needs an ally now more than ever, Garrus continues, "I want you to know that I've been working day and night to find evidence of Saren's betrayal of the Council."

Skeptically, Shepard raises his eyebrow at the turian. "And?"

"And," Garrus replies, before his shoulders fall, the full weight of his failure burning into him. "And…I found nothing. He's a Spectre, which means every damn thing he touches becomes classified. I can't get a damn bit of evidence on him."

"Well that doesn't help us very much," Williams disdainfully adds, earning a harsh look from Shepard.

Garrus looks to the side, contemplating how to respond to the humans. _Why can't anything ever go right for once? _ "I know it doesn't help much. I just need more time and I can nail that bastard to the wall. But it looks like that's not happening today. But I'm not going to stop until I get the evidence that I need to bring him down. Good luck, Commander. I hope the Council believes you. But if they don't, know that I've still got your back." Garrus moves past them, disappearing into the elevator as he leaves the Tower.

"Never thought I'd see a turian go after their own like that before," Williams comments.

"Same here," Shepard replies. "But the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Officer Vakarian might be able to help us. And we are going to need all the help we need."

"Aye, sir," Willaims responds as she and Alenko follow their commander up the stairs towards the sprawling Council chambers.

* * *

_Of course they would be separated from us like this. Responsible leaders always separate themselves from the riff-raff_. Walking up what felt suspiciously like a plank on an old pirate ship, Alenko followed the other two marines after Captain Anderson to where Ambassador Udina was addressing, no, arguing with the Council while the towering hologram of a turian observed the proceedings. _Must be Saren. Might be just a hologram, but you can still feel the anger and hatred coursing off of him. Considering how Anderson described him, it makes sense._ Looking at Udina's face, Alenko can tell that the meeting isn't going well.

"Consider the evidence, Councilors…"

"We will consider the evidence when we have some, Ambassador," Sparatus interrupts, putting a negative emphasis on Udina's title.

"I agree," Tevos add, more diplomatically than her turian counterpart. "While the geth attack on Eden Prime is of some concern, there is no evidence that Saren Arterius was involved in the attack."

Almost desperately, Udina adds, "But what of the testimony of the dock worker who said that he saw Saren gun down Nihlus in cold blood?"

Valern quickly replies, "The testimony of one traumatized dock worker who was probably questioned under duress by Commander Shepard is hardly compelling evidence." _Sonuva bitch, these bastards aren't even trying to see our side of the story _Alenko thinks to himself.

Finally, the hologram speaks, as if he was an untouchable by anyone and anything, "I am offended by these baseless accusations. Nihlus was a dear friend of mine, and my protégé. I trained him, taught him how to be a Spectre. I could never murder a fellow turian in cold blood."

"But you sure as hell could murder a human, couldn't you," Anderson cuts in, his voice laced with venom.

"Of course, my so-called 'nemesis' Captain David Anderson. I should have known you would be here. So quick to always drag my name through the mud. How's that working out for you? But what else would I expect, from a human?"

"You can expect a human to not hide behind their Spectre status when they massacre a peaceful human colony," Shepard cuts in, no longer content to let this monster get away with what he's done. "And you can expect a human to finish what a turian coward started."

"You see this," Saren asks the council, in his best innocent voice. "Threats and slander from the humans. We are expected to believe that they are an evolved race? They aren't ready to join the Council. They certainly aren't ready to join the Spectres."

"He has no say in that," Udina replies, a hint of desperation in his voice. "That's not his decision!"

Stepping in, with a tired sigh, Tevos responds, "Shepard's admittance into the Spectres is not the purpose of this meeting. The attack on Eden Prime and Saren's supposed involvement in that attack are."

"There is no purpose to this meeting," Saren rebukes. "It's time to end this farce. I have much better things to do than to listen to false accusations from an inferior species."

Adamantly shaking his head, Shepard vehemently replies, "Oh come on! Listen to the hatred in his voice. He obviously despises humanity and would do anything to hold us back. He was responsible for the attack on Eden Prime. He's just hiding behind his Spectre status, giving him free reign to do whatever the hell he wants!"

Interjecting, Valern emphatically replies, "We need evidence, Commander. So far we have seen none. No legitimate government would ever make a decision on so little evidence."

"Tell that to Shanxi," Shepard bitterly replies, earning a flaring of the mandibles from the turian Councilor.

"If I may, Councilors," Anderson steps in, desperation tingeing his voice. "But we are forgetting one thing – Commander Shepard's vision."

"Hah," Saren butts in. "Are we allowing dreams into evidence now? There is no way I can defend myself from flights of fancy."

"Saren is right," Sparatus is quick to agree. "Unless the Ambassador has any additional evidence to add, this meeting is pointless."

"Commander Shepard," Valern addresses the accuser directly, "do you have anything further to add?"

"There's nothing left to say. You already made your choice," Shepard angrily replies.

The asari Councilor looks to both sides of her, earning a shake of the head from her fellow Councilors. Bowing her head a moment before looking directly at Shepard she announces, "The Council can find no conclusive evidence of Saren's involvement with the geth during the attack on Eden Prime. It is the ruling of this Council that Udina's petition to have Saren disbarred from the Specters be denied. Meeting adjourned."

Smugly, Saren responds, "I'm happy to see that justice has finally won the day. If you'll excuse me, I have more important matters to address."

The hologram of the supposed rogue Spectre fades out and the Council leaves their dais, supposedly to continue their running of the galaxy. Udina turns to Anderson and comments, disappointment clear in his voice, "Well that's just great. Now we've made ourselves the laughing stock of the galaxy."

"Saren is hiding…" Anderson begins.

"Saren is the bloody best Spectre this galaxy has ever seen," Udina interrupts as he leads the group away from the Council chambers and towards the elevator. "The Council will never go against his word without real evidence. Which in case you hadn't noticed, we don't have."

"Then I guess we will just have to find that evidence," Alenko interjects, earning an exasperated look from the human Ambassador.

"Shepard will find it," Anderson confidently adds.

"I will?"

"Yes, you will," Udina agrees. "If you want to ever be a Spectre and prove Saren is a traitor, this is your chance."

_Maybe I don't want that chance_. "If I'm going to do this, I should probably start with that C-SEC agent, Garrus Vakarian. He acted like he was close to finding something on Saren. Maybe he can help us."

"Good idea," Udina agrees. "I have contact with C-SEC, a man named Harkin."

"Oh god," Anderson cringes as they arrive in the elevator. "Not Harkin. He's a deadbeat. Suspended, without pay. Dirtiest cop I've ever met."

"If he can point us in the direction of Vakarian, then we should at least talk to him," Williams says, finally adding something to the conversation.

After considering for a moment as the elevator doors open, Shepard responds, "Harkin it is, then. Where is he?"

* * *

_You gotta be fucking kidding me_, Shepard thinks to himself. _I'm supposed to save humanity, and I'm supposed to start in a goddamn strip club?_ Looking over his left shoulder, he sees Williams staring daggers into his back. Smirking despite his better judgment, he shrugs his shoulders and innocently asks, "What? Don't you like the view?"

"I have a feeling that Alenko appreciates it much more than I do, Commander," she sarcastically responds, looking over at the LT. "Am I right, LT?"

"Kinda hard not to appreciate it, Chief. Heh, it's not like primitive male urges are going to be going away any time soon," Alenko meekly responds, cheeks flushing slightly.

"C'mon, lets split up and see what other kinds of views we can find," Shepard half orders, half suggests. Pointing to the left of the circular bar, Alenko and Williams get the hint that they should go that route as he goes the opposite way, weaving his way through the crowded bar. _Reminds me of some of the dives in Old New York. Not a place to be when you aren't armed_, he thinks as he unconsciously taps the butt of his concealed pistol.

"Watch yourself, Wrex," a gravelly voice threatens, catching Shepard's attention. Seeing two towering krogan, one clearly a club bouncer, Shepard smoothly makes his way over to them. "Making unwarranted threats can get you thrown behind bars," the bouncer threatens despite the fact that he was clearly outmatched by the much larger krogan.

"Ha," Wrex barks as an amused smirk comes across his face. _As if he didn't look intimidating enough with those three deep scars across his head. _ "Is that supposed to be a threat?"

"I mean it Wrex. Fist doesn't want you here."

"You tell your boss that I will kill him," Wrex menacingly tells the fellow krogan, getting right in his face. "Even if I have to blast my way through his backrooms," he adds, waving his arm towards the entrance to the storage rooms of the bar.

Standing up to the older krogan, the bouncer replies, "Threats will get you nothing but a visit from C-SEC, Wrex."

"Who said anything about threats, pyjack," Wrex mocks, a mischievous smile on his face. "I was making a promise." The bouncer visibly takes a step back from the bounty hunter, visibly shaken now. "You tell Fist, I'm coming for him. And I always get my man." Confidently turning from the younger krogan, Wrex comes face-to-face with Shepard and barely gives him the time of day as he brushes past the human. "Out of my way, pyjack," the krogan tells him. "I have no quarrel with you."

Shepard backs away from the mountain of krogan, knowing that this is not a person to be trifled with. As he backs away, he spies General Oraka, sitting back in his chair with mug in hand. _Just like the Consort said he'd be. Poor drunk bastard._ Putting on a fake smile, Shepard confidently strides up to the turian military leader and says, "General, good to see you."

* * *

"My, my, my. Don't we look good in that little get-up tonight, darling."

_Oh god, I think I just threw up in my mouth_. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, I think you heard ol' Harkin right, sweet thing. How 'bout you sit on ol' Harky's lap and lets see where this fine evening takes us."

Shooting a look over at her companion, Williams sees Alenko stifling a laugh. _Oh good, I'm so glad that my embarrassment is so freaking hilarious to you, LT._ Raising an eyebrow, the Chief turns back to the drunk and replies, "You might want to start over, asshole."

"I'll start any way you want to darlin'."

Exasperated, Williams looks over to Alenko, who manages to wipe the smirk off of his face before stepping in. "You might want to rephrase that, buddy."

"Hey! I ain't talkin to you, pretty boy! I was talkin to tha lady," Harkin angrily replies, slurring every other word.

"I don't care if you were talking to an asari ten credit whore on two credit Tuesdays, you do not disrespect someone like that. Now stop gawking at my friend here and tells us what we want to know. Where the hell is Garrus Vakarian," Alenko demands, putting on a show of barely restrained anger. _Wow, LT. Didn't know you had it in ya. Guess there is more of your friend in you that you want to admit to_.

Smugly, Harkin eyes the two people who interrupted his drinking. "I bet you're both a part of Anderson's crew, aren't ya?"

"What's that got to do with anything," Williams snaps.

"Dontcha see? Its all related. Garrus is going after Saren, who is Anderson's sworn enemy. And here you two come in, two humans asking questions about Saren. Coincident? I think not."

_Fuck this. _Losing her control, in a fluid motion, Williams leans over the table, grabs Harkin by the collar, and slams him on his back onto the table. Producing her Predator pistol, she jams it under his chin with a malevolent smile on her face as she lifts her leg up and uses her knee to pin him down on his chest.

"Everything alright here, Chief," Shepard asks as he makes his way through the gathering crowd.

"Everything's just peachy, Commander," she confidently answers. "This loser was just about to answer my question," she answers as she looks right into Harkin's widened eyes.

"Did he just piss his pants," Alenko amusingly asks to no one in particular. "Am I the only one who sees this?"

"Alright, alright, I'll tell ya," Harkin pleads as Williams confidently smiles. "Last I heard, he was at the Med Clinic in Bachjret Ward. Some doctor had information for him, something to do with Saren!"

Leaning down, putting more pressure on his chest, Williams seductively breathes, "You sure about that, Harky?"

"Yea," Harkin exclaims.

"Thanks, Harky," Shepard replies for Williams. "C'mon Chief, lets to see if our friend here is telling the truth." Williams nods her head and gets off of Harkin, who immediately begins coughing dramatically, looking for sympathy wherever he can get it. "Oh, and Harky? If you're lying to us, I'll let my friend here come for ya. And believe me, she will have fun finishing what she started."

Harkin visibly pales from the threat as the trio of marines saunter out of the bar.

* * *

_What is it with punks nowadays_, Garrus Vakarian thinks to himself as his mandibles flare in irritation. _Threating a doctor, of all people?_ Sneaking around the corner, he eyes his target, waiting for the opportune moment. Getting ready to leap into action, the opening of the clinic door causes him to hesitate. _What in the name of the spirits…_

"Hold it right there," the main assailant barks at the intruders, grabbing the good doctor and pointing his gun to her temple.

Seizing his opportunity as he notes who the newcomers are, Garrus smoothly rises from cover and fires a single shot – right between the eyes of the doctor's captor. As he continues his motion and goes right back into cover on the opposite side of the hallway, all hell breaks loose as the new arrivals pull out their guns and open fire on the remaining thugs. Leaning out of cover, he sees the last of the thugs get taken out by a biotic blast from one of the humans, _Alenko I think his name is_.

The female human quickly checks their assailants before declaring, "All clear, Commander!"

Nodding his head at her, he ships his pistol as he walks up to Garrus. "That was a hell of a shot, Vakarian. You married to your pistol or something?"

"I guess you could say that," Garrus responds, the pride evident in his voice. "You don't make top marksman in C-SEC on luck." Finally turning to the doctor that they were there to save, he asks, "Dr. Michel, are you hurt?"

Visibly shaken, she shakes her head, "No, I'm alright. Thank you officer, Commander, for coming when you did."

"Do you know why those men were threatening you," the biotic lieutenant sincerely asks.

"Yes, they were working for Fist. They wanted to shut me up."

"Fist," Shepard asks. "He owns Chora's Den, right?" Getting a nod in return from Garrus, he continues, "Why would Fist want to shut you up?"

"It has to do with the quarian."

"Quarian," Garrus asks. "What quarian?"

"She had information that she wanted to sell to the Shadow Broker, something about Saren and his connection to the geth. She came here after she was shot and told me so."

Perking up at this information, Shepard excitedly asks, "Where can I find this quarian?"

"I don't know. I sent her to Fist because I knew he was an agent for the Shadow Broker. But know obviously I think Fist has changed sides since these men that attacked me wanted to know what the quarian had told me. That's when you and Garrus showed up."

"Aww, man. We're going back to that dump now, aren't we Commander," Williams whines

"What's wrong, Ash? Don't ya want to see ol' Harky again," Alenko teases, earning a deadly glare from the Chief.

"Commander, let me go with you," Garrus cuts in, pleading. "I want to see Saren brought down just as much as you do."

"Why should we believe that," Williams asks with disdain in her voice. "Don't you turians always stick together?"

Adamantly shaking his head, Garrus' mandibles flare as he replies, "Saren is a disgrace to my people and a traitor to the Council. I know he's turned on us, and he deserves justice. I just want to do my part and help to bring him in."

"Alright, I'll take you. I have a hunch that there's someone else we can bring in on this also," Shepard replies.

"Who is that, Commander," Alenko asks.

"Someone big," Shepard cryptically replies. "Take Williams and go stake out Chora's. Don't breach, just wait for us. Shouldn't take long."

"Aye aye, Commander."

"C'mon, Garrus. Lets go get our point man."

* * *

_I can't believe I'm doing this. A squishy human and a cowardly turian. Maybe my father was right to shun outside help_. Shaking his head, Wrex follows his two new partners towards the rat's den. _Oh good, two more squishys. This is going to end well_.

"Report, LT," Shepard asks, now back in full combat regalia, same as his two subordinates. Pulling out his pistol, he notes that the nightclub looks locked down.

"It's gone quiet, Commander," Alenko responds. "And it's as if they designed it to be fully defensible. Only one way in or out."

"Good," Wrex interjects. "That means Fist won't be able to leave without getting through us."

Eyeing the layout of the club that Garrus brings up on his omni-tool, Shepard nods his head. "Alright, here's the plan. Wrex is our point-man. Big guy plows the road. Williams, Alenko, you follow him, right on his ass. Cover his sides and pick off the stragglers. Garrus, you hang back and eagle-eye the rest. Pick off anything that either gets by or isn't seen fast enough. Wrex, you take them to the right, I'll cloak and go to the left. Hopefully, everything will be focused on you and I'll get through unscathed. Whoever makes it first goes to the storage rooms and makes it to the office. We need Fist alive to tells us where the quarian is, otherwise this whole op is for nothing, got it?"

_Confident little squishy. Better not get in my way for Fist. He's dead after he talks._ After Shepard nods his head, Wrex smirks and stands up. "Keep up, little pyjacks! With a thunderous roar, Wrex charges headfirst into the front door, knocking it wide open. A startled human lets out a yell that is cut short from the krogan's Claymore barking once and shredding most of his face off. "Haha! Uncle Urdnot is here, who wants to play?" The guards hesitate as Wrex cocks his shotgun, only to be cut down by William's staccato bursts from her assault rifle and Alenko's precise shots from his pistol combined with his biotic warps. Not noticing the slight shimmering form going off in the opposite direction, Fist's guards concentrate their fire on the charging krogan. However, their feeble shots are not able to penetrate Wrex's barrier, and they are cut down one by one by the marines and the guards own crossfire. Every so often a guard's head would explode, followed by the thunderous boom of a Mantis sniper rifle, courteously of Garrus' marksmanship.

Out of nowhere, the krogan bouncer bellows in anger and charges the trio, knocking over Williams and Alenko on his was to barreling into Wrex, throwing him to the ground. Before Wrex can even move, staring right into the barrel of a shotgun, a slight shimmer gracefully moves in, and the nozzle of the shotgun is forced upright just as the krogan pulls the trigger. Startled, the bouncer has no time to react as Shepard appears out of nowhere and throws a quick jab into the krogan's eye, blinding him. Without hesitating, Shepard produces a combat knife and buries it underneath the bouncer's frontal plate on his forehead. Flicking his wrist, Shepard easily rips off the frontal plate, exposing the soft skin directly above the brain of the krogan. Before he can complete the kill, the soft skin explodes, throwing grey matter and ichor all over everyone. Looking back, Shepard sees the grim look on Garrus' face as he ratchets another clip into place on his sniper rifle and nods his head at the assist.

"Haha, we are going to have some great times, Shepard," Wrex exclaims as he picks Williams up off the ground. "Now let's go pay Fist a visit."

* * *

Calmly moving forward, firing his pistol, Shepard quickly ducks into cover as the return fire begins getting too close. _Can't anyone ask questions anymore? Why is it always shoot first now?" _Looking to make sure that the quarian was still under cover, Shepard motions to Wrex and Alenko, the two biotics. Nodding their head, two cyan orbs form in their hands and shoot out, narrowly missing the turian assassin. _Fist at least was good at his word, at least at the end. And I know Wrex is a man of his word._ The krogan mercenary killed Fist, fulfilling his contract with the Shadow Broker, but going against every fiber of Shepard's body. _Fist had surrendered. He was unarmed. But I have a feeling that Fist's death will be the least of my worries by the time this mission is over_. Popping back up out of cover, Shepard pumps a couple of shots right between the eyes of one of the salarian assassins just as Williams peppers the other in the abdomen with her assault rifle. Desperately, the turian assassin charges the quarian, only to be met head on by Wrex and crushed against the bulkhead as the sickening sound of crunching bones echo in the now silent alleyway.

Showing some chivalry, Garrus holds out his hand, helping the quarian female up. _Jeesh, they just have to make those suits skintight, don't they? Can't anyone leave anything for the imagination anymore? _Walking up to them, Shepard asks the quarian, "Are you ok?"

Exasperated, the quarian exclaims, "That no good bosh'tet, he set me up!"

"Ya, we kinda gathered that," Garrus not so smoothly asks.

Swiftly turning her head, the quarian's eyes narrow behind her faceplate. "Thanks for stating the obvious, turian." Garrus takes a step back, realizing he stuck his foot in his mouth yet again.

"Why does Saren what you dead? What do you have on him," Alenko interjects.

Nervously, the quarian begins rubbing her hands together as she looks down before speaking. "How do I know I can trust you guys?"

"Besides the fact that we just saved your sorry hide," Wrex gruffly interjects.

Seeing her wince, Shepard walks up to her and places a hand on her shoulder. Gently, he asks, "What's your name, miss?"

_I shouldn't trust this human. I have no reason to, except that he did save me. Something about his eyes, I think. The eyes of an orphan, who has seen so much loss, pain, and death. But there is a strength there…_"Tali. My name is Tali'Zorah nar Rayya. But you can just call me Tali."

"Ok, Tali. You can trust us. I'm Commander Shepard, in charge of these lovable miscreants."

"Thanks, Commander," Williams sarcastically replies to the jibe as she places her hand on her cocked out hip.

Shepard smirks back at her before turning back to the young quarian. "We need to know what information you have on Saren. I'm with the Systems Alliance. I believe that Saren has allied himself with the geth, but I need proof of this."

Tipping her head to the side, as if she was smiling, Tali replies, "Well then, I think I have the proof Commander."

"Then by all means, come with us to the human Ambassador. We'll make sure that no one else will try to harm you."

"Not like I have any choice but to trust you. Lead the way, Commander."

* * *

_He looks so disappointed. Why am I reminded so much of my father right now? It's so easy to feel overwhelmed right now._ Holding both her arms, Tali listens once again to the recording that she salvage from the geth, this time in front of the Citadel Council. _The same Council that won't let my people's fleet close to their space_.

"This evidence is irrefutable," Sparatus says solemnly, bowing his head in shame as his people's greatest warrior is proven traitorous. "Saren will be stripped of his Spectre status, his assets sealed, and he will be labeled a fugitive from justice."

"That's not good enough," the human Ambassador angrily states. "You know he's in the Traverse, send your fleets it!" _Boy he's an arrogant little bosh'tet, isn't he?_

"That's not an option," the salarian Ambassador replies. "We send a fleet in, it could be seen as an act of war by the Terminus Systems. I'm not willing to start a war that will cost millions of lives over one man."

"And millions of lives will be lost if Saren is allowed to continue unabated," Anderson contends. "His army of geth won't stop at just Eden Prime. Every colony is at risk!"

"Then what do you suggest, Captain," Tevos sincerely asks.

Out of the blue, another voice interjects. "Send me after him." _Keelah, of course he would say something. Look at him, as if a mere mortal can stand against gods. _

Everyone looks at Shepard before the asari councilor calmly says, "He's right. There is a way to enter the Traverse without sending fleets or soldiers."

"No!" The turian councilor adamantly interjects. "Humanity is not ready for the responsibilities of being a Spectre!"

"You would still believe that Saren was a loyal Spectre if it wasn't for me! My team and I found the evidence that damned him. We deserve the chance to bring him to justice. And we all know how you bring a Spectre to justice." _Oh, Keelah, one man against Saren and the geth? What did I sign up for?_

Tevos looks over at Valern, who nods his head in the affirmative. They both look at Sparatus, knowing his vote will be the hardest to get. He looks down in contemplation before nodding in the affirmative as well. Tevos finally looks over at assembled crowd who was witness to the proceedings. Taking a deep breath, she says as regally as possible, "Commander Dace Shepard – step forward."

Unsure of what to do, Shepard looks over at his long-time mentor, Anderson. His only response is Anderson giving him a nod of encouragement. _Guess it's up to me_. Tali places her hand on his shoulder and squeezes, offering her encouragement as well. Steeling himself, Shepard looks at the asari councilor and nods his head affirmative as he takes a few steps forward, in front of Udina on the gangway.

With a smile tugging at the edges of her mouth, Tevos continues, "It is the decision of this Council that you be granted all of the powers and privileges of the Special Tactics and Reconnaissance branch of the Citadel."

"Spectres are not trained, but chosen," Valern dramatically adds. "Individuals forged in the fire of service and battle. Those whose actions elevate them above the rank and file."

"Spectres are an ideal, a symbol," Tevos begins again. "They are the embodiment of courage, determination, and self-reliance. The right hand of the Council, they are an instrument of our will."

With great reluctance in his voice, Sparatus adds, "Spectres bear a great burden. They are protectors of galactic peace, and are both our first and last line of defense. The safety of the galaxy is theirs to uphold."

"You are the first human Spectre, Commander," Tevos finishes with pride in her voice. "This is a great accomplishment for you and your entire species."


End file.
